[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunseok Yoo] Future Stream Networks (FSN) stock is showing strong performance. The increase in users of the Chinese video app service TikTok, along with prospects of its listing, appears to be influencing the stock price. Behave Global, a subsidiary of FSN Asia, the overseas business division of FSN, is responsible for global marketing of leading domestic and international brands targeting Greater China and English-speaking regions. In particular, in China, it holds first-tier official marketing agency status for major platforms such as TikTok, Tencent, and Weibo.
As of 9:59 AM on the 9th, FSN was trading at 1,415 KRW, up 8.85% (115 KRW) compared to the previous trading day.
On the same day, a media outlet reported that ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, was valued at $200 billion in a private transaction on the over-the-counter market last February. The company’s valuation increased by about 25% ($50 billion) in just one month. ByteDance is pushing for the listing of the Chinese version of TikTok, Douyin (?音), on the New York Stock Exchange this year. If the listing succeeds, the company’s value is expected to rise further.
The surge in TikTok’s user base has driven the rapid increase in corporate value. As of January, TikTok had 689 million users worldwide, and including Douyin, the total reaches 1.29 billion. This ranks fourth globally after Facebook (2.74 billion), YouTube (2.291 billion), and WhatsApp (2 billion). TikTok, founded in 2012, took less than four years to surpass 1 billion users, a faster growth rate than Facebook and Instagram (about 8 years) and WhatsApp (about 7 years).
Supported by the increase in users, ByteDance’s revenue last year ($35 billion) more than doubled compared to the previous year. ByteDance is reportedly considering an initial public offering (IPO) for Douyin either in New York or Hong Kong. As of August last year, Douyin had secured over 600 million daily active users (DAU). Its Chinese competitor Kuaishou saw an explosive market response, with its Hong Kong IPO price soaring about three times above the offering price during its first trading day in February.
There are also expectations that ByteDance will aggressively invest if it successfully raises funds through Douyin’s listing. The rapid increase in users is anticipated to enhance marketing effectiveness, which is believed to have influenced FSN’s stock price.
Hwang Yoon-soo, Vice President of Behave Global, stated, “We plan to continue comprehensive support so that domestic small and strong products, which find Chinese marketing burdensome, can enter the Chinese market without difficulty.” He added, “Since the platform will be built as an in-app shopping mall linked to WeChat official accounts, we expect to secure genuine product trust and active marketing effects through influencers.”
However, some view that risks remain as the issue of TikTok’s U.S. business sale has not been fully resolved, and the Chinese government has announced strengthened controls over big data companies.
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